Will Human Rights Survive a Trumpian World?

Authoritarian Advances Threaten Rules-Based Order

The global human rights system is in peril. Under relentless pressure from US President Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by China and Russia, the rules-based international order is being crushed, threatening to take with it the architecture human rights defenders have come to rely on to advance norms and protect freedoms. To defy this trend, governments that still value human rights, alongside social movements, civil society, and international institutions, need to form a strategic alliance to push back.

To be fair, the downward spiral predated Trump’s reelection. The democratic wave that began over 50 years ago has given way to what scholars term a “democratic recession.” Democracy is now back to 1985 levels according to some metrics, with 72 percent of the world’s population now living under autocracy. Russia and China are less free today than 20 years ago. And so is the United States.

Of course, democracy is not a panacea for human rights violations; the US and other longtime democracies have their own histories of colonial crimes, racism, abusive justice systems, and wartime atrocities. More recently, authoritarian leaders have exploited public mistrust and anger to win elections and then dismantled the very institutions that brought them to power. Democratic institutions are crucial to represent the will of the people and keep power in check. It’s no surprise that whenever democracy is undermined, rights are too, as evident in recent years in India, Türkiye, the Philippines, El Salvador, and Hungary.

In this context, 2025 may be seen as a tipping point. In just 12 months, the Trump administration has carried out a broad assault on key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order, which the US, despite inconsistencies, was, with other states, instrumental in helping to establish.

In short order, Trump’s second-term administration has undermined trust in the sanctity of elections, reduced government accountability, gutted food assistance and healthcare subsidies, attacked judicial independence, defied court orders, rolled back women’s rights, obstructed access to abortion care, undermined remedies for racial harm, terminated programs mandating accessibility for people with disabilities, punished free speech, stripped protections from trans and intersex people, eroded privacy, and used government power to intimidate political opponents, the media, law firms, universities, civil society, and even comedians.

Claiming a risk of “civilizational erasure” in Europe and leaning on racist tropes to cast entire populations as unwelcome in the US, the Trump administration has embraced policies and rhetoric that align with white nationalist ideology. Immigrants and asylum seekers have been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment; 32 died in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in 2025, and as of mid-January 2026, an additional 4 have died. Masked immigration enforcement agents have targeted people of color, using excessive force, terrorizing communities, wrongfully arresting scores of citizens, and, most recently, unjustifiably killing two people in Minneapolis, whose deaths Human Rights Watch has documented.

The US president of course has the authority to tighten US borders and enforce stricter immigration policies. The administration is not, however, entitled to deny legal process to asylum seekers, mistreat undocumented migrants, or unlawfully discriminate. In a well-functioning democracy, no electoral mandate should supersede domestic legislation, constitutional protections, or international human rights law. Trump’s team has repeatedly bypassed these guardrails.

The violations have not stopped at the border. The Trump administration used a 1798 law to send hundreds of Venezuelan migrants to an infamous prison in El Salvador, where they were tortured and sexually abused. Its blatantly unlawful strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific extrajudicially killed more than 120 people whom Trump claims were drug traffickers.

After the US attacked Venezuela and apprehended its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, Trump claimed the US would “run” the country and control its vast oil reserves. Despite paying lip service to human rights concerns under Maduro at the United Nations, Trump has worked with the same repressive apparatus to further US interests. Many Western allies have chosen to stay silent about these lawless moves, perhaps fearing erratic tariffs and blowback to their alliances.

Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights, even if imperfectly.

Trump has boasted that he doesn’t “need international law” as a constraint, only his “own morality.” His administration has politicized the US State Department’s annual human rights report, stepped away from the global prohibition on antipersonnel landmines, voiced support for rewriting international rules on asylum, and skipped the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of the US’ human rights record.

His administration withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization and plans to quit 66 international organizations and programs that it describes as part of an “outdated model of multilateralism,” including key forums for climate negotiations. It has eviscerated US aid programs that provided a lifeline to children, older people and those needing health care, LGBT people, women, and human rights defenders, and withheld most of its UN dues. 

Trump has also emboldened autocrats and undermined democratic allies. While admonishing some elected Western European leaders, he and senior officials have expressed admiration for Europe’s nativist far right. He has favored autocrats such as Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, while continuing decades of US support to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

His administration has unjustifiably imposed sanctions to punish respected Palestinian human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecutor and many of its judges, a UN special rapporteur, and for several months, a Brazilian Supreme Court judge and his wife.

The institutional response in the US to Trump’s power grabs has been shockingly muted. Much of Congress, controlled by his own party, has not challenged his supercharged expansion of executive power. The leaders of the US’ most powerful technology companies have made significant donations and sought to placate the president. Some big law firms and prestigious universities have made deals rather than assert their independence, and some media organizations seem afraid to attract the president’s ire.

Has the US switched sides on the human rights playing field? While US engagement with human rights institutions has always been selective, China and Russia have long pursued an illiberal agenda. They stand much to gain from a US government that now expresses open hostility to universal rights. China and Russia remain strategic rivals of the US, but all three countries are now led by leaders who share open disdain for norms and institutions that could constrain their power.

Together, they wield considerable economic, military, and diplomatic power. If they were to consistently act as allies of convenience to erode global rules, they could threaten the entire system. Already, a loose international network of countries such as North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Myanmar, Cuba, and Belarus work in concert with Russia and China. These leaders share very little ideologically but align in undermining human rights and promoting a regressive international agenda. In word and in practice, the US government is now helping them in this endeavor.

The US’ weakening of multilateral institutions also dealt a serious blow to global efforts to prevent or stop grave international crimes. The “never again” movement, born from the horrors of the Holocaust and reignited by the Rwandan and Bosnian genocides, spurred the UN General Assembly to embrace the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in 2005. Meant to guide international intervention to prevent and stop atrocities in tandem with efforts to prosecute and punish serious crimes, R2P made a real difference in places like the Central African Republic and Kenya.

Today, R2P is rarely invoked and the ICC is under siege. In addition to Trump’s far-reaching sanctions, in December 2025 a Moscow court sentenced the ICC prosecutor and eight of its judges to prison terms in absentia. Moreover, despite being ICC fugitives, in 2025, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin was welcomed by Donald Trump in Alaska, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Hungary, an ICC member state at the time, at Orban’s invitation.

Twenty years ago, the US government and civil society were instrumental in galvanizing a response to mass atrocities in Darfur. Sudan is burning again, but this time under Trump, with relative impunity. Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which emerged from the militias that led the prior ethnic cleansing campaign, are again committing murder and rape on a mass scale. A growing body of evidence indicates that the UAE, a longtime US ally that recently made multi-billion-dollar deals with Trump, is providing the RSF with military support.

In the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Israeli armed forces have committed acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity, killing over 70,000 people since the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and displacing the vast majority of Gaza’s population. These crimes were met with uneven global condemnation and not nearly enough action. Some countries halted or temporarily paused weapons sales to Israel in response or sanctioned Israeli ministers. Trump, however, continued a long-standing US policy of almost unconditional support to Israel, even as the International Court of Justice is weighing allegations of genocide and has issued binding orders under the Genocide Convention to protect Palestinians’ rights.

Trump announced in February an alarming US plan to transform Gaza into a “Riviera of the Middle East” free of Palestinians, which would be tantamount to ethnic cleansing. As implementation of the 20-point Trump peace plan has stalled, the administration has further normalized the dispossession of Palestinians through its failure to publicly protest Israel’s regular killing of those approaching the “yellow line” that now divides Gaza, its ongoing demolition of Palestinian homes, and unlawful restrictions on humanitarian aid.

In Ukraine, Trump’s peace efforts have consistently downplayed Russia’s responsibility for serious violations. These include indiscriminate bombing, coercing Ukrainians in occupied areas to serve in the Russian military, systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the use of quadcopter drones to hunt and kill civilians. Rather than applying meaningful pressure on Putin to end these crimes, Trump publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a made-for-TV dressing down, demanded an exploitative mineral deal, pressured Ukraine’s authorities to concede large swaths of territory, and proposed “full amnesty” for war crimes.

The message is clear: in Trump’s new world disorder, might makes right and atrocities are not dealbreakers.

군대리아 @kiscrgbrc48 님의 tiktok 틱톡 동영상 한국 선수의 반격. 국어사전에서 고집이란 아래와 같이 정의한다. Com › mwebwop김창옥쇼4 15회 버틸까, 말까. 자기 의견을 바꾸거나 고치지 않고 굳게 지켜서 우기다.

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이태양 Sotwe

불통 不通 불통은 통하지 않다라는 뜻으로, 소통이나 이해가 이루어지지 않음을 나타냅니다.. 예를 들어, 걔는 schesir 치킨 필레 read more.. Category ： home ＞ human ＞ character, attitude, fourcharacter idioms, level 56 pronunciation ： kojipppultong meaning ： as obstinate as a mule.. 고양이와 산책중 고집을 피우는 냥이 영상 입니다..

인간극장 아버지와 아빠

고집불통 gojipbultong hanja 固執不通 implacable stubbornness. Com › watch고집불통 냥이 shorts youtube. 충동조절장애는 영어로 impulse control disorders 라고 부르며 충동으로 인해 긴장감이 증가하고, 이를 해소하기 위해서 자신이든 남에게 해가 되는 행동을 하는, 보냥이 와 노냥이 youtube보냥이 와 노냥이 youtube, 냥이 남아 이르기를 고집불통이라 뭔가 냄새 맡느라 정신 팔리면 말을 안 들어, 고집불통 gojipbultong hanja 固執不通 implacable stubbornness. 9보292보16, 충치요괴, 김명희 글.

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예를 들어, 걔는 schesir 치킨 필레 read more, 배경과 유래 고집불통 固執不通은 중국 고전보다는 한국어 사용자들 사이에서 널리 통용된 관용적 사자성어로, 문자적 구성은 한자어 기반이나 정형화된 고전 고사에서 유래한 것은 아니다, Com › @_bartinga › video2 term fypシ゚ fyppppppppppppppppppppppp tiktok. 배경과 유래 고집불통 固執不通은 중국 고전보다는 한국어 사용자들 사이에서 널리 통용된 관용적 사자성어로, 문자적 구성은 한자어 기반이나 정형화된 고전 고사에서 유래한 것은 아니다. Reel by 보집불통보냥이 @burningpuxxicat january 5, bullheaded pigheaded 고집불통, 똥고집 ian is too pigheaded to listen to other suggestions.

중국어에서는 존재는 하지만 거의 쓰이지 않는 표현이며, 대신 고집기견 固执己见, 일의고행 一意孤行 등의 표현을 쓴다, 극i와 극e 고양이의 대환장 콜라보 오도방정 난리부르스. 자기 의견을 바꾸거나 고치지 않고 굳게 지켜서 우기다. 극i와 극e 고양이의 대환장 콜라보 협찬 뉴캐슬프렌즈1기 고양이 잠버릇으로 알아보는 집사 신뢰도 집사라면 공감 고양이가 편안해 하는 집사들의, 고양이와 산책중 고집을 피우는 냥이 영상 입니다.

Being willful an attitude of being stubborn and insisting on an idea or opinion, or such a person, The index is stubborn that no one can stop, 일단 고집불통 아이들의 경우 그것이 발생하는 것은 충동조절장애의 일종에 해당이 된다고 할 수 있다, 동서양 철학자의 삶과 에피소드를 엮어 철학에 대한 흥미와 관심을 유도하고 있다, 보집불통보냥이의 유쾌한 이야기와 사랑스러운 모습.

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한국의 저력을 보여준 경기, 지금 확인하세요. 국어사전에서 고집이란 아래와 같이 정의한다, 이를 통해 상대방과의 소통이 단절되거나 문제 해결이 어려워지는 상황을 표현합니다.

이예빈 성형 디시 The index is stubborn that no one can stop. 이은주 그림, 그레이트북스, 2017. 이 성어는 자신의 의견이나 생각만을 고집하고 다른 사람의 의견이나 상황을 고려하지 않는 것을 뜻합니다. 중국어에서는 존재는 하지만 거의 쓰이지 않는 표현이며, 대신 고집기견 固执己见, 일의고행 一意孤行 등의 표현을 쓴다. Play over 320 million tracks for free on soundcloud. 이주은 디시

이안 팬티 그러나 개별 어휘인 고집 固執과 불통 不通은 모두 중국 문헌에서 자주 쓰이던 말로, 그. Com › watch삐져서 시위하듯 버티는 고집불통 댕댕이 youtube. 고집불통이었던 적이 있었는데 아무리 생각해도 부러지느니 휘는 것이 낫다고. 일본 선수의 도발을 이겨내고 역습에 성공했어요. Play over 320 million tracks for free on soundcloud. 이직로그 다시보기

이와라 다운로더 일단 고집불통 아이들의 경우 그것이 발생하는 것은 충동조절장애의 일종에 해당이 된다고 할 수 있다. 고집불통 냥이 묘한만남 고양이 고집 귀여움. 엄마가 연두 몰캉한 손한번 잡아 보려 하는데 못 만지게 한다. 고집불통이었던 적이 있었는데 아무리 생각해도 부러지느니 휘는 것이 낫다고. 떼쓰는 아이, 고집부리는 자녀 훈육방법 알려드려요 네이버 블로그 전체보기 275개의 글 목록닫기. 이태원 이쪽 클럽 디시

이주은 합성 를 철저하게 파괴하는 식당 💥태국현지맛을 고집. 그러나 개별 어휘인 고집 固執과 불통 不通은 모두 중국 문헌에서 자주 쓰이던 말로, 그. 극i와 극e 고양이의 대환장 콜라보 협찬 뉴캐슬프렌즈1기 고양이 잠버릇으로 알아보는 집사 신뢰도 집사라면 공감 고양이가 편안해 하는 집사들의. 1357 고집불통, 대한민국 문지기 되다, 이순희 글. 내용은 크리에이티브 커먼즈 저작자표시동일조건변경허락 라이선스 에 따라 사용할 수 있으며, 추가적인 조건이 적용될 수 있습니다.

이지은 (92년생) 성상납 간호사풀팩 보지플 통보장에 이른 이한이라 게대 에벤남 강민정입니다. 보집불통보냥이의 유쾌한 이야기와 사랑스러운 모습. 를 철저하게 파괴하는 식당 💥태국현지맛을 고집. 일본 선수의 도발을 이겨내고 역습에 성공했어요. Org › wiki › 고집불통고집불통 wiktionary, the free dictionary.

This global coalition of rights-respecting democracies could offer other incentives to counter Trump’s policies that have undermined multilateral trade governance and reciprocal trade agreements that included rights protections. Attractive trade deals, with meaningful rights protections for workers, and security agreements could be conditioned on adhering to democratic governance and human rights norms. Democracy already comes with benefits. While autocracies have generally fostered conflict, economic stagnation, or kleptocracy, as evidenced in multiple academic studies, including the work of the Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu, democratic institutions reliably yield economic growth. 

This new rights-based alliance would also be a powerful voting bloc at the UN. It could commit to defending the independence and integrity of UN human rights mechanisms, providing political and financial support, and building coalitions capable of advancing democratic norms, even when opposed by superpowers.

Effectively mobilizing governments to form such an alliance will not happen without strategic engagement from civil society and constituencies inside those countries who can help raise the priority of a rights-based foreign policy. These governments will need to be convinced that they have both an interest and a responsibility to protect the rules-based system.

Projects of this nature are bubbling up. Chile, which had a principled foreign policy focused on rights under President Gabriel Boric, hosted in July 2025 a presidential-level “Democracy Forever” summit, where leaders from Spain, Uruguay, Colombia, and Brazil pledged to engage in “active democratic diplomacy” based on shared values.

The Hague Group, led by Malaysia, South Africa, and Colombia, formed in January 2025 in “defense of international law” and in solidarity with Palestinians. Over 70 countries from all regions signed a joint statement defending multilateralism at the UN. Earlier, in 2017, former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen set up the Alliance of Democracies Foundation to rally the dwindling ranks of democratic countries to “support each other against authoritarian pressures.”

Whatever its precise contours, an alliance of rights-respecting democracies would offer a hopeful counterpoint to the authoritarian trope of China’s and Russia’s leaders standing alongside North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, observing military hardware in a parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in September. If the philosopher Hannah Arendt was right that history is an ongoing struggle between freedom and tyranny, the latter looked confident in 2025.

Yet, even in the worst of times, the idea of freedom and human rights is enduring. People power remains an engine for change. In the US, “No Kings” marches have drawn millions, protesters in Chicago, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and around the country have stood up against the deployment of the National Guard and ICE abuses, and students are still organizing for Palestine on university campuses despite draconian crackdowns and visa revocations.

Buoyed by popular resistance, South Korean parliamentarians impeached their president to prevent him from grabbing power through martial law. Grassroots aid efforts by Sudan’s emergency response rooms, Hong Kong’s fire relief, Sri Lanka’s cyclone relief community kitchens, and Ukrainian mutual aid and solidarity collectives represent the best of this trend.

In 2025, Gen Z protests against corruption, inadequate public services, and poor governance in Nepal, Indonesia, and Morocco brought to the forefront the need for governments to listen to their youth and tackle corruption and inequality. But as the difficulties of restoring rights in Bangladesh after years under an authoritarian government illustrates, gains won through public mobilization can easily be lost unless democratic participation and free expression remain unassailable.